On Nov. 18, 1973, professional football player Elmo Wright scored a touchdown that, by itself, was not all that remarkable. But what happened next was: Elmo became the first player to celebrate a touchdown by dancing in the end zone.

Interviewed by the New York Times30 years later, Wright said: “I’ve accomplished a lot in my life, but what happened in the end zone is what defines my career.” Such is the metaphor applied in Dance in the End Zone: The Business Owner’s Exit Planning Playbook. For business owners who have invested their lives into their businesses, what happens when they exit the business probably defines their legacy.

This book’s author, Patrick Ungashick, heads up a consulting firm that specializes in assisting business owners to successfully engineer the sale of and departure from their life’s work. And while Ungashick does not work exclusively in the financial services arena, there are enough commonalties among the exit strategies for businesses of any sort to make this book a worthwhile read. In fact, there may be some advantage to the lack of specifics about the financial services industry because that helps the broader strategies shine through.

That bigger picture begins with an exploration of why business owners are so often unprepared for wrapping up their life’s work.

First, they are usually so busy running their companies on a day-to-day basis, coupled with thinking that retirement is years away, that they simply do not assign any priority to the exercise until it suddenly is in front of them.

Second, the process requires a lot of thought, investigation and decisions — and human nature being what it is, complexity often leads to procrastination.

Finally, and perhaps most worrisome, is the belief that “it can wait” until three to five years before the planned exit date. In the financial services industry today, this misconception is fostered by frequent commentary about advisor demographics suggesting there will be multiple buyers for just about any practice.

An important distinction is made between “exit planning” and “succession planning” — terms that are, erroneously, often used interchangeably. The former addresses the needs of the owner; the latter focuses on the needs of the business. Although there may be some overlap, a sound succession plan does not guarantee a successful exit, or vice versa. If, for example, the succession plan assures the survival of the business but leaves the departing owner financially vulnerable, it is not a successful exit.

Ungashick suggests several questions every business owner must answer to enjoy a dance in the end zone. Included among them are:

> When Do You Plan To Exit? Set a range of the earliest possible and latest desirable ages to retire.

> What Is Your Likely Exit Strategy? (a) Pass the business to a family member, if you have family members with the desire, ability and youth required to own your business. (b) Sell to an insider, if you have trusted associates with the desire, ability and youth to manage your business profitably after you are gone. (c) Sell to an outsider, if your business offers transferable value significantly above book (liquidation) value. (d) Planned liquidation — meaning, if none of the above work, close your business in an orderly manner when you exit.

> What Is Your Exit Magic Number? This is the total amount of capital you require to achieve personal financial freedom, minus the capital you have outside the business. The lower your number, the less dependent you are on the business and the easier it will be to exit when you want.

> Where Will It Come From? Few businesses are sold for a lump sum, so owners need to find ways to create cash flow after their exit until future liquidity can be realized.

The book extends the football analogy by encouraging you to develop your “game plan” for each strategic exit option (family, insider, outsider, liquidation) and then support that game plan by having various tactics for each scenario.

Once you have been through the first few chapters and have settled on your strategy, you can skip the sections that pertain to the other options. An appendix at the end of the book itemizes more than 50 “plays”; by matching the purpose of each with your personal strategy, you can zero in on those that might be applicable to your circumstances.

@page_break@Otherwise, don’t get frustrated by the many U.S. tax and legal references; stick to the bigger picture and your time will be rewarded. IE